Ghana will be hoping to keep their hopes of qualifying for the FIFA World Cup alive when they travel to face Sudan on Friday.

James Kwesi Appiah s men sit second in Group D of the second
round of qualification, and can keep up the pressure on group leaders Zambia
with a win as they try and progress to the third and final round of CAF
qualification for the 2014 tournament in Brazil.

The visitors will be confident of securing victory against a
side they comfortably dispatched in their last qualifier back in March.

Ghana ran out 4-0 winners on that occasion, Asamoah Gyan,
Wakaso Mubarak, Abdul Waris and Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu finding the net as
Appiah s side cruised to victory.

Gyan and Mubarak have both been prolific for Ghana in recent
times, and th…

Barcelona have completed a deal to sign highly rated French defender Clement Lenglet from Sevilla for €35.9million, with the player set to sign a five-year contract.

Lenglet, 23, had long been identified as a target for Barca, with reports linking them with a move for much of the 2017-18 season.

The defender made the switch to Spain in January 2017, leaving Nancy – for whom he was captain – and seamlessly fitting into Jorge Sampaoli s team.

Even after Sampaoli s departure, Lenglet continued to be a mainstay under Eduardo Berizzo, Vincenzo Montella and Joaquin Caparros last term, featuring 35 times in LaLiga.

Get to know our new signing, !

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona)

Barca reportedly stepped up their pursuit upon the conclu…

One day on from the end of Russia 2018, the sadness at bidding farewell to one of the greatest World Cups of all time is almost too much to bear, but an alternative award ceremony might alleviate some of the post-tournament blues.

France defeated Croatia 4-2 in Moscow on Sunday to become world champions for a second time, 20 years on from winning it on home soil.

But, given the number of memorable moments thrown up by the incredible four-week festival, there is so much more to look back on than just Sunday s enthralling final.

From pitiful penalties and harrowing hairstyles, to proud presidents and classy coaches – here is Omnisport s alternative World Cup awards…

Comedy moment – Michy Batshuayi

In Belgium s 1-0 group stage win ov…

Everton striker Louis Saha has pulled out of France s friendly match against Spain in Paris on Wednesday due to a thigh strain, the French Football Federation said.

In-form Saha picked up the injury in training and was absent from his club s 2-1 Premier League defeat at the hands of Tottenham on Sunday.

He had been set to earn his first international cap since November 2006 when he appeared for France against Greece in a friendly.

Les Bleus coach Raymond Domenech has called in Panathinaikos frontman Djibril Cisse as Saha s replacement.

Cisse, who had spells in England with Liverpool and Sunderland, has not played for the national side since May 2008 when he played in a 2-0 friendly victory over Ecuador.

…

Mark Halsey

Nobody likes the referee do they?

Determined

Both teams think that the man in the middle is biased towards the opposition, both managers think that the man in the middle is determined to lose them their job and all fans everywhere think the man in the middle is at best, short-sighted and at worse, incompetent.

That is just how it is for the refs I’m afraid. Don’t feel too sorry for them, nobody made them do it!

I just wanted to get that off my chest before I pass on a really good news story about one of the top refs in English football.

Battle

Last night Mark Halsey refereed his first game since overcoming the latest stage of his on going battle against cancer. Forty-eight year old Halsey, who comes from Bolton, off…

Former Manchester United winger Wilfried Zaha has revealed that he was forced to keep his trickery to a minimum during his time at Old Trafford as then-manager David Moyes wanted him to keep things simple.

Zaha joined United from Crystal Palace in 2013, but failed to secure regular first-team football and was shipped out on loan to Cardiff City halfway through his first season.

He eventually left the club on a permanent basis for Palace again and has now taken aim at Moyes following his unsuccessful spell with United.

Under Moyes I had to adjust my game, Zaha told Soccer AM. 

Certain managers want a trustworthy player, someone that will always keep the ball. 

But he was the only one who told me to stop some of the tricks and keep the ball in …

Sergio Aguero believes Manchester City have what it takes to mount a Champions League challenge as they look forward to a third consecutive last-16 tie.

City are already assured of a spot in the round of 16 ahead of Wednesday s trip to last season s finalists Juventus.

Aguero and Co. secured qualification with two matches to spare in Group D.

City have bad memories of the last 16, and Barcelona in particular, following back-to-back exits at the hands of the Champions League holders in 2013-14 and 2014-15.

However, Aguero feels City who will be looking to cement top spot in the group now have sufficient experience not to fear Europe s best.

Since I arrived here, the draw in the Champions League has been very tough on City, and we have always drawn…

Chelsea are one of the three teams topping the Premier League table with 10 points after four matchdays, though Everton could still join them as a fourth on Monday evening.

Here s what manager Thomas Tuchel had to say after his men dispatched Aston Villa by 3-0 on Saturday.

Nothing is quite like winning. When you take that step it changes something inside. We are hungry for more though, it’s like an addiction.”

Thomas Tuchel demands hunger and desire from himself and the team

— Football Daily (@footballdaily)

…

Brazil s Richarlison has urged for strong punishments to be issued to those found guilty of racial abuse, after having a banana thrown at him while on international duty.

The Tottenham forward scored the second of the game in Brazil s 5-1 victory over Tunisia in Paris but a comfortable win, the last international game before Brazil s World Cup campaign commences, was marred by the incident.

A banana was thrown as Richarlison celebrated his goal, his ninth in 20 appearances for the national side, which became the latest racist incident to impact Brazilian footballers.

Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jr had suffered abuse from Atletico Madrid fans in his side s recent derby triumph, following on from quotes from a Spanish agent who told him to stop playing the monkey …

Crystal Palace have announced the signing of midfielder Barry Bannan from Aston Villa for an undisclosed fee.

The Scot, who played under Palace manager Ian Holloway at Blackpool, has signed a three-year deal with the Premier League new-boys after ending his lengthy association with Villa, which began when he joined the club s youth academy as a 14-year-old.

Bannan has since made 83 appearances, but has moved on after struggling for regular first-team football since the arrival of Paul Lambert.

And he has expressed delight after being handed a new opportunity by Palace.

I went back home to Scotland over the weekend ahead of meeting up with the international squad so I ve had to travel back down but it s a great bit of news for me, he told the club s official websi…